Moodtheme Roy Mustang
by Lenidrabbles
Summary: 100-word self-contained snippets based on LJ's moodtheme. And our favorite Flame Alchemist. MANGA CANON - plus Roy/Riza overtones.
1. 01 to 05

_**DISCLAIMER: **Not mine.  
**SUMMARY: **MANGA. All about Roy in 100 words snippets.  
**DEDICATION: **To Dana. This was written for her birthday. :)_

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**MOODTHEME - Roy Mustang  
**_by Leni_

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**_accomplished_**

"HA!"

The triumphant cry, along with the loud slap of paper against wood, carried into the anteroom. At their respective desks, three men raised their heads and stared at each other.

"The Colonel just finished reviewing the earlier stack of paperwork," Falman surmised. His eyes went to the pile of folders on Hawkeye's desk. The woman herself hadn't yet returned from her usual round at the firing range. "Did he know it was just the beginning?"

Havoc gave a headshake.

"Should we tell him?" Fuery asked.

The three men considered the outcome. "We wait for Hawkeye," they said in unison.  
.

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**_aggravated_**

"Go to hell!" Golden eyes flashed before Edward turned on his heel and slammed the door closed.

That child's stubbornness sometimes made Roy wish he'd never taken that train to Resembool, never met the Elrics, never drafted the most promising alchemist of the last three generations. But Edward _was_ the best, and when push came to shove, the Fullmetal Alchemist came to Mustang's office for advice. There was power in that, and Roy believed in power…

"Keep an eye on him," he snapped at his men.

…even when, sometimes, all he wanted was teach that kid a lesson in manners.

.

.

.  
**_amused_**

It was cute.

The boy's cheeks kept going from crimson to white, in accord with the girl's swinging moods. Even when a heavy wrench made its appearance - Roy wondered at the choice, surely a hammer would prove more effective? - the rapport between the two children stayed the same.

"Well." The boy growled, refusing to be cowed. "Maybe I don't need a whiny girl trailing after me!"

Far from whining, the mechanic stiffened and glared.

Forgotten by both, Roy cringed. "I don't think Fullmetal is surviving this one," he commented to his aide.

Riza huffed. "As if you were much better."

.

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**_angry_**

Ever since Maes had met the man behind the Flame Alchemist, he'd wanted to scowl at the spineless saps who were so afraid of Roy's abilities that they gave him a wide, obvious berth.

For the last three days, though, Maes couldn't blame the poor bastards. Roy radiated a threatening power, and his ever-present smugness had been replaced by a hardened expression that sent war-seasoned soldiers scurrying into their tents.

"The last convoy has arrived safely to Central," he said. The one with an injured (seriously burned, said the rumor) Hawkeye.

Roy balled his fists.

Maes wondered, but didn't ask.

.

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**_annoyed_**

"I'm the Flame Alchemist," he muttered under his breath, keeping his pace slow so his companion could keep up. "I'm Colonel Roy Mustang. A legend before his thirtieth birthday who rises far above his contemporaries," he quoted from a recent women's magazine article.

He made a obligatory stop next to a tree. Waited.

"I'm feared across the country," he continued when their stroll resumed. "I'm called a hero. Not that those people should be believed," he added, looking down at the trusting dark eyes.

Those eyes blinked, curious.

Roy sighed. "I'm _not_ a damned dog-walker."

Black Hayate wagged his tail.

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16/06/09  
**TBC**

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Feedback makes me happy. Mentioning your favorite even more. :)


	2. 06 to 10

_**Thank for the reviews, **AngelCallie** and **peaceofmindalchemist**! And yes, 'annoyed' is my favorite in that quintent as well. I even entered it for the Free Wordcount week at fma_fic_contest. lol :) Enjoy the next five!**_

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**MOODTHEME - Roy Mustang  
**_by Leni_

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**_anxious_**

The silence in his office grew with every day without news from the brothers. "How difficult can it be," Havoc had wondered four days ago, "to track down a towering metal armor and a loud midget?"

Very difficult, it turned out, when the armor and midget in question applied themselves.

"Could something have happened to them?" Fuery said in a quiet voice.

Probably. Surely. _Yes_, by all means.

"Nonsense," Hawkeye told them. "They're too smart."

Their commander officer nodded, agreeing with her assessment. But the gloved fingers that tapped the underside of his desk would have been a dead giveaway.  
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**_apathetic_**

Roy couldn't even summon surprise at the sight that awaited him. Unlike the dusty, unfriendly kitchen he was used to, he walked into a gleaming room, with a feminine flurry of activity in its center.

He recognized the smell of his favorite meal.

"You should be mourning your husband."

Gracia almost dropped a pan. Then she grimaced - for that gesture couldn't be called a smile. "By letting his best friend starve himself?" Her eyes pled to let her do this. "I'd never seen so many empty bottles together."

Roy shrugged and turned around. Hopefully there were still some full ones..

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**_artistic_**

Fire arcs bent to his will; building-size flames molded at a single thought… and yet he despaired of completing this challenge. His true weakness, he reflected as he strained not to ruin it, was his utter inability to ignore a wish from a female he was fond of.

No matter that said female barely reached his waist.

"Uncle Roy?"

Roy looked up from his work to meet earnest green eyes.

"Snowmen have carrots instead of noses," Elicia informed him, pointing at the bright red blob he'd drawn. "Carrots are orange."

"Maybe this snowman is unique," he hedged.

Elicia wasn't convinced..

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**_awake_**

Consciousness was painful.

Lying down was painful.

Opening one's eyes, Roy thought with an inward wince, might not be worth it.

The last thing he remembered was the assassin's smirk a second before a well-aimed shot ("One second too late, Riza," he remembered thinking.) took him down. Then came darkness, and occasional bursts of noise and voices, the half-dreamed impression of a hand holding his…

A chair next to the bed scraped the floor.

Roy's eyes opened, hopeful. But the smell of cigarettes should have warned him.

"Hey, boss," Havoc chirped.

Roy decided that it _definitely_ hadn't been worth it..

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**_bitchy_**

Roy scowled at the guards at the Eastern Headquarters gate. He scowled at the pretty secretary who crossed his way. He scowled at Fuery, who proceeded to bury his head in some broken gadget.

With a last scowl at the universe, he stalked into his office and locked the door behind him.

The last news from Central had sparked his temper. Some obscure desk-warming, paperwork-pushing Colonel had been promoted in his stead. Nobody wanted the Flame Alchemist any closer to power, Maes had explained over the phone.

Damn them.

He _was_ the best, and they'd regret not noticing it earlier.

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16/06/09  
**TBC**

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Hope you liked these!


	3. 11 to 15

_**Thank you again, **AngelCallie** and **peaceofmindalchemist**! You know how to keep an author happy. :)**_

**_Now, I haven't READ the manga, just the spoilers, so if you see something that doesn't fit with manga canon, please tell me?_**

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**MOODTHEME - Roy Mustang  
**_by Leni_

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**_blah_**

Maes paced across the living room, shooting furious looks at the sprawled figure on the carpet, only half-supported against the couch. "You'll drink yourself to death, you stubborn ass."

Roy lifted a bottle in a silent toast to that idea.

The taller man bent at the waist, face peering into his friend's. "If you think you can let all my work go to waste," he said, "you're more fucked up than I thought."

"It's your own fault," Roy muttered, ducking his head so he didn't have to see Hughes' concerned features. "Nobody told you to go and die on me."  
.

.

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**_blank_**

Eve was in line for lunch, when someone tugged on her arm. "Melissa," she greeted her fellow secretary.

The enthusiastic blonde grinned, pointing toward the cafeteria doors. "That's him."

For three days, there'd only been one 'he' for Melissa. If Eve had to listen again how fantastic a first date this Roy guy was…. Curious nonetheless, she turned around - and her jaw dropped open. "Colonel Mustang?" she hissed. "That's your Roy?"

A nod, and then Melissa waved and shouted his name across the room.

The Colonel looked up, found Eve's friend almost instantly. But no recognition showed on his face.

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**_bored_**

The numbers danced before his eyes.

Roy sat up straight, rubbing a hand over his eyes and flipping the paper sheet around to further avoid the neatly printed columns. Operations reports, he could handle. Personnel reviews, Hawkeye could coerce him into doing.

But the official budget - the interminable, thorough list of expenses from his office in the last trimester - was tedious.

"Falman!" He shrugged his jacket on. "Get the car." One hour away; one hour or the budgets would sit on ashes on his desk. The necessary paperwork to put it back together wasn't worth it. "I need some air."

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**_bouncy_**

His dark eyes sparkled. "Let me show you."

Riza tried a protest - "The dishes…." - but the older boy pulled her elbow with more insistence. There was an energy about him; his limbs looked tense as if he could barely contain himself within his skin. "You're helping me later," she relented.

"Slave driver," he grumbled as he pressed their pace toward the study. But he never loosened his grasp.

Riza wasn't surprised when he stopped before an alchemic circle, not even when he managed to activate it. But the fact that he'd called her, not Father…. "Thanks, Roy."

He beamed back.

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**_busy_**

Roy hesitated as he added another concentric circle. He itched to consult the book laid on Hawkeye's desk as temptation; but was stopped by Master's unsaid rules: only weaklings doubted, and weaklings had no business learning alchemy.

"Roy?" A blond head appeared at the door. "Could you please - " She noticed the crumpled pages around him. "Never mind." And she disappeared again.

His assignment had been clear: create an array that would grant more control. Master would be furious if he failed.

But Riza never asked for help unless she needed it…. With a sigh, he rose and went after her.

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16/06/09  
**TBC**

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	4. 16 to 20

_**As always, thank you fore reviewing! **_

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**MOODTHEME - Roy Mustang  
**_by Leni_

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**_calm_**

Falman read through the official report from Central. His steady voice never betrayed his thoughts; but his eyebrows shot up and then burrowed as he followed the latest news from the Elric brothers. Even Hawkeye sucked in a breath when it was revealed that Ed's injuries had not been as light as the boy had recounted initially.

"I can't shorten their leash. Not now," Colonel Mustang mused. He had his fingers steepled on the desk, the tips of his forefingers tapping each other as he absorbed the news. "Is that all?"

Falman swallowed his 'I hope so'. "For the moment."  
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**_cheerful_**

His glass clinked against Maes'. "I hope that baby takes after Gracia," he teased, drinking down their third glass. "Otherwise we'll have a hard time keeping it from being harassed at school."

"I never was harassed," Maes stated, but he smiled as he noticed that his best friend had included himself in his child's future. "And of course it'll take after Gracia. It'll be too smart a baby not to."

"Smart?" Roy chortled. "Definitely Gracia's child, then."

Maes shrugged, too happy to defend his intelligence. "My wife is the loveliest woman ever," he sighed in contentment, "Wanna see a picture?"

.

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**_chipper_**

The men in the anteroom forgot their current assignments as their boss walked past them and disappeared into his office. Three heads consulted the clock. There was utter silence as each man tried to comprehend what they'd just witnessed.

"It's before eight." Fuery laid down a screwdriver before it fell from nerveless fingers. "Was he… whistling?"

"Indeed," Falman corroborated.

Havoc fished for a new cigarette. "He was damn _skipping_," he said around the stub. Which was an exaggeration, but so close to the truth that neither colleague contradicted him. Havoc smirked. "Well, now we know what was making Hawkeye late."

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**_cold_**

He rubbed his arms, trying to create some warmth. Riza - no. Sergeant Hawkeye pointed at the gloves peeking from his coat pocket. "I'm fine," he barked. Didn't say that his ignition gloves offered no comfort.

"It's shocking that it should be so hot in the morning, and almost freezing after sunset," Maes commented later, offering a cup of coffee.

Roy took it. Allowed the hot beverage to drown the protest. It didn't matter if it was day or night, not to him.

If he had known that the Ishbalan desert could be so cold, he'd have never come down here.

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**_complacent_**

All these years. All that effort to translate generations of alchemic wisdom into something a boy could assimilate. All his ambitions and hopes.

Wasted.

The boy had become a man. An untried, cocky, idealistic one; the kind that thought the world was at his fingertips. In Hawkeye's eyes, Roy had never been more of a child. "You have learned everything from my library, haven't you?"

A nod, just shy of arrogant.

The self-confidence melted into confusion as Hawkeye reached for his daughter, patted lightly between her shoulders. "Yet you know nothing."

Roy's puzzled frown deepened when Riza fled the room.

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16/06/09  
**TBC**

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